Serenity Ranged Weapons
Prayer for the Rim: “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the firepower to make the difference.” This is where you’ll find the gumption to make the difference. Gun shops everywhere carry pistols, rifles, and shotguns; military surplus stores often carry more unconventional arms and melee weapons. You should keep in mind that the Alliance strictly controls the sale of weapons on the Core. Permits are required for carrying weapons (especially concealed weapons) and many firearms and Newtech weapons are electronically tagged to make them traceable. Black markets exist on the central planets where you can buy illegal, untraceable firearms, but getting caught with such a weapon will land you on a penal moon. On the Rim, folk aren’t so picky. Gun shops are supposedly regulated, but, in truth, the government has better things to do than go around hasslin’ gun dealers and manufacturers. There is also a black market for guns on the Rim and these dealers tend to carry weapons with a bit more bang for a bit more buck. ‘Course, there’s always a good chance their previous owners are looking for ‘em, so you might want to keep what you buy under wraps until you’re back on the ship. There are so many kinds of weapons in the ‘Verse, we couldn’t possibly list them all here. Then again, unless you’re straying off into the realm of Newtech, most weapons tend to have the same ingame effects and stats as others in the same class (even if they look different). Spend some time figuring out what kinds of weapons your crew carries. A bullet fired from any type of gun can kill you, but folk tend to give more respect to those carryin’ big, shiny guns, as opposed to those totin’ derringers. 'Thrown Weapons' *'Axe, Throwing': A short-handled, single bladed axe, balanced for throwing. *'Bolo': A throwing weapon consisting of two or more weights connected with a rope cord, used to entangle a target or even knock ‘em out. If you achieve an extraordinary success against a target when throwing a bolo, you’ve entangled him, causing a –2D to physical actions until he gets free. If you’re caught in a bolo, you need to take a turn and an Easy Strength or Dexterity action to free yourself. *'Boomerang': An aboriginal weapon dating back to the Earth-That-Was, used by hunters to stun or kill small prey. Throwing a boomerang requires a Thrown Weapon/Boomerang action; catching it is an Easy action. Settlers on Lilac tell of a feral child brandishing a metallic, razor-edged boomerang. They say it may be, heaven forbid, a Reaver child, if such a thing could actually exist. *'Clatter': A strange and ungainly Reaver weapon consisting of a handle and two jointed weights set around a central pivot. When thrown, the clatter opens and whirls towards the target, the shifting weights of the weapon adding to its velocity and making a clattering sound as it goes. It strikes with devastating force and can kill instantly, which is usually a kindness compared to what else a Reaver might have in mind. *'Dart': A small weighted weapon thrown point-first at a target. These are larger and heavier than the kind of darts you use for a dartboard, and can cause a world of hurt. *'Javelin': A short-hafted spear, usually lighter and balanced for throwing. *'Knife, Throwing': A lightweight knife, usually without a hilt or crosspiece, balanced for throwing. Throwing knives usually come sheathed in sets of three. *'Shuriken': A flat, star-shaped piece of metal thrown at someone you’re not overly fond of. Throwing stars aren’t usually enough to kill someone, but do cause considerable annoyance. *'Sling': A primitive weapon consisting of a leather strap, used to hurl a weighted bullet or stone at the target. *'Slinger, Arm': A scoop-shaped extension of a glove used to throw spiked weights at any gorram fool dumb enough to get within throwing distance of a Reaver. 'Bows' *'Bow': Like the sword, the longbow has become a fashionable weapon of sport in the Core. Most quivers hold 20 arrows, costing about 5 Silver per arrow. The Alliance does not regulate the sale of bows and arrows. (Leastwise as of now.) Learning to skillfully use the bow and arrow can be part of the training of a Registered Companion. *'Crossbow': A little more practical than the longbow, the crossbow is used as a hunting weapon. A case usually holds 20 bolts that cost about the same as arrows. *'Crossbow, Powered': High-powered, fancy crossbows are used almost like sniper rifles by some, though they were meant for hunting game, not people. The bolts for these cost as much as bullets. 'Missile Weapons' *'Grappler': This device fires a spiked grapple with force considerable enough to put it into a hard surface, or send it a ways. Someone in a pinch might use a grappler in an offensive manner, so to speak. *'Grenade Launcher': These nasty devices can be loaded with any normal grenade, allowing them to be fired from a considerable distance. The damage done by the grenade is the same as the grenade used, but because the launcher is more inaccurate than most guns, range penalties are doubled. *'Speargun': A long pistol stock and frame, spring or gas-powered, firing a long metal arrow. Spearguns are traditionally used underwater, but few folks these days let tradition stand in the way of inflicting pain. 'Firearms' *'Bolter, Pneumatic': Pneumatic weapons use compressed air and fire cylindrical metal slugs with bone-shattering force. They’re quieter than anything but a dart pistol or a laser, but they’re just as deadly as any firearm. A bolter is the size of a semiautomatic rifle, though a bit bulkier around the stock. Anyone taking damage from a pneumatic bolter must make a Strength roll versus the amount of damage the weapon inflicted. If successful, the target remains standing; failure means his pi gu hits the floor in an abrupt fashion. *'Derringer': Small and concealable, the derringer holds only two shots and is slow to fire—but it makes up for it by packing a wallop. Not much range to be had with one of these, though. *'Pistol, Dart': This light pistol uses a compressed air canister to fire small darts filled with any substance desired—generally some drug or poison. *'Pistol, Flare': Though a flare pistol’s intended purpose is to let folks know where you are if you’d like to be rescued, you can also use one as a pistol. Say you have a falling out with the other guy in a life-raft. If you shoot someone with a flare pistol and achieve an extraordinary success, gohn shi you’ve set ‘em on fire. They’ll take another 1D+1 damage each turn until they can extinguish themselves. A flare pistol usually comes in a padded case with six rounds ready for use. *'Pistol, Flechette': A sleek little weapon with a short range and a wide capacity for pain, a flechette pistol fires a hail of microthin knifelike blades at a target. They’re next-to-useless against armored targets (any Armor is doubled versus flechette rounds), but against unarmored foes they’re quite nasty. No serious killer of men would use such a weapon—it’s a nasty toy for a dandy. *'Pistol, Gauss': A pistol that utilizes a magnetic coil inside the barrel to push a metallic slug forward at great speed. Gauss pistols have tremendous penetration power and are remarkably silent, though this is balanced by their slow rate of fire and intensely high power requirements. A gauss pistol ignores 1D+1 of Armor. A gauss pistol can fire six times before needing to recharge (by either replacing the battery or spending an hour in its recharge cradle). *'Pistol, Heavy': This meaty, powerful pistol has a bit of heft and considerable physical presence. Two popular brands are the Century Marauder VI and the Deutrex SI–4. The best thing about a heavy pistol is that once you run out of ammo, you can always hit someone with it (for 1D+1 Stun). If it jams and you can’t fix it, you’ve got yourself one fine and impressive nutcracker. *'Pistol, Laser': A highly coveted piece of Alliance Newtech, laser weapons are illegal for all except those on the central planets who can obtain special permits for them (and that ain’t easy!) and the Alliance military, who don’t often use them anyway, because of the high cost involved. Laser pistols inflict more damage than a normal weapon, and the Wounds they inflict are considered burn wounds and thus are much harder to heal. Laser weapons require extremely high-density batteries, which cost 2 Credits each and are very difficult to find. Laser pistols don’t sit on the black market for long. *'Pistol, Light': A ladies weapon or a good holdout gun, light pistols range in size and configuration from derringers to those fancy rigs some folks use for trick shooting. *'Pistol, Medium': The staple of gunfighters everywhere, pistols come in all shapes and sizes. Most folk on the Rim are allowed to carry them in even polite society, since having a gun shows you’ve got good sense. *'Rifle': Whether used for hunting or combat, the rifle is a very deadly weapon. Unfortunately, carrying one of these around is a might conspicuous. *'Rifle, Assault': Full-auto weapons are definitely frowned upon by most authorities (‘cept when they’re the ones using them), but the attraction of being’ able to saw a man in half is right strong in some. Most Feds carry a Newtech assault rifle as their main weapon. *'Rifle, Gauss': A longarm using gauss technology. Slugs fired from such a gun have astonishing force (ignoring 2D+2 of Armor) and range. A gauss rifle can be fired a dozen times before needing recharging or a fresh battery. *'Rifle, Sniper': Used by those who prefer one shot, one kill. Remember, though, that the range increment listed is for someone bracing the rifle and using the scope. If you try to use this like a normal rifle, it uses the range of a normal rifle. *'Rifle, Sonic': The standard issue weapon of choice for law enforcement on the central planets, the sonic rifle looks like a fancy shotgun with a couple of nested radio dishes about five inches across where the barrel ends. The sonic rifle fires a sonic burst that stuns the target, potentially knocking him down (or out). Armor works at only half effectiveness, rounded down, and there is no risk of damaging any but the most fragile of goods. The gun has a very short range and is inoperable in a vacuum. Like a laser weapon, it runs on hard-to-find batteries (1 credit each), and like most government equipment it is usually equipped with a transponder chip that allows it to be tracked. *'Shotgun': Two barrels of death. ‘Nuff said. *'Shotgun, Automatic': A shotgun with a larger magazine, capable of burst fire. *'Stunner, Ranged': A short-ranged energy rifle capable of firing a coherent electric pulse, set to the same frequency as human brainwave function, capable of scrambling the target’s mind and stunning him temporarily. A target hit with a stunner takes Stun damage and must make a Difficult Strength roll. Failing the roll knocks the target out, and adds 4D Stun damage for his trouble. Succeeding on the roll imposes a –1D all Attributes for one minute, a condition that can accumulate with additional successful attacks. *'Submachine Gun': SMGs are popular in the criminal underworld. Machine guns eat ammo, but at least you can sleep better at night knowing your enemies are carrying around two pounds of lead. 'Special Weapons' *'Blowgun': A small-to-long tube used to shoot tiny darts at a target by blowing through it. Blowgun darts generally don’t do much damage. The point is to deliver some sort of toxin that does the real work, like Kortine or Cyanol. *'Mace': A chemical spray used to cause temporary nausea, blindness, and coughing in the victim. Someone sprayed in the face with mace must make a Moderate Stamina roll to see and act without penalty. Failing this roll incurs a –2D penalty to any appropriate actions. 'Source' *Serenity Role Playing Game (pages 79-81) *Serenity Role Playing Game: Six SHooters & Space Ships (pages 19-21) *thedemonapostle